Kingdom Hearts: The Alternate Ending
by Cheza Arosukir
Summary: It's a slightly different version of the ending to the first Kingdom Hearts game. I thought the real ending should have had something more surprising in it. I hope Kingdom Hearts fans like it!
1. Home Sweet Home

"Kingdom Hearts: The Alternate Ending"

Chapter 1: Home Sweet Home...

After battling on countless stars, defeating huge armies of Heartless enemies and fighting is way through the End of the World, Sora had finally made it to his final destination: right back where he'd started. He was back home on Destiny Island, or so it seemed. With the help of his new friends Donald and Goofy, Sora was going to defeat the corrupt scientist Ansem, at the same time saving his friend and rival Riku (the body of whom Ansem had taken over) and restoring peace to the many worlds.

As he looked over what had once been his home, he remembered the old days, back when he would hang out with Riku and Kairi. Back then they would just play around all day, occasionally dreaming of a different life. He wished so much that he could go back to those days!

While he was reminiscing, Sora noticed something strange. The island itself looked the same, except for the beach. The ocean had completely disappeared, leaving only a gigantic, purplish-black abyss. The ground of the beach itself was cracked and falling apart, the sand slowly slipping off into nothingness. Sora felt as if he could cry at the sight, but he pulled himself together and concentrated on looking for his target. Finally, he spotted it, and ran toward the person on the edge of the beach..

Riku was standing at a small part of the beach (which was now more like a cliff) that jutted out farther than the rest of the land. He was still in his new outfit: the purple one with the torn cloth around the waist. Sora ran up to him, Goofy and Donald following behind.

"Riku!" Sora called to his friend. "Are you all right?"

When the figure turned towards them, Sora gasped in horror. The person on that beach _looked_ like Riku, but he wasn't. His eyes were cold...empty all emotions, and the smile on his face was about as welcoming and comforting as a bed of spikes. Sora knew that this...this _thing_ was _not _Riku. He didn't know how he knew, he just did. As he neared him/it, he kept his guard up, and his Keyblade at the ready.

"Who are you?" he said threateningly. "What have you done with Riku?!"

"And where's our King!?" Donald and Goofy added. The figure laughed menacingly, making Sora's body shake to it's very bones.

"You really don't know who I am Sora?" drawled the imposter in a voice that was far from Riku's playful, mocking speech.

"I've got a guess," Sora replied. "You're Ansem, aren't you? You're the scientist who studied the Heartless. Why are you doing this!?!? Why are you trying to destroy everything?!"

"I'm just trying to prove my theory," Ansem replied in his calm, cold voice. "The idea that everything: all life, all hearts, all Heartless; begin and end in _darkness_!"

"I don't believe that theory," retorted Sora, "and I'm going to be the one to prove it wrong! Now, tell me where Riku is!!" Ansem laughed again.

"Your friend's heart has completely succumbed to the darkness!" he cackled. "He fought bravely at the end, but he was eventually overpowered. I don't know where he is know, and frankly, I don't care. I no longer have any use for him. Now, you foolish boy, prepare to die!!"

Ansem was beginning to change. His body grew taller; his hair became longer and became white; his eyes turned white around their irises; and his skin darkened to a brown tan. He was no longer in Riku's body. Ansem had returned to his own form.


	2. First Battle

Chapter 2: First Battle

The new and improved Ansem lifted his arm, causing Goofy and Donald to slide backwards, and a cage of black fire to envelope them. No matter what they did, they couldn't get out.

"Think you can beat me without your little friends, Sora?" Ansem sneered.

"Actually, I was hoping to get you all to myself," Sora shot back. "Don't worry guys, I can do alright alone!" he shouted to his friends. "Okay Ansem, let's get this over with!"

Sora rushed at Ansem, who floated into the air. He tried hundreds of combos from every angle, sometimes being able to get a hit in, other times being thrown back by a counterattack. He was faster and stronger than he'd ever been, his hate of Ansem, and the love of his friends (new and old) fueling him farther than he'd ever thought possible. Unfortunately, Ansem was extremely powerful. His supply of tricks and spells looked as if they had no end. He could block almost all of Sora's moves, sometimes sending them back at the Keyblade Master. The fight seemed to go on for hours. Finally, when it seemed that Sora would win, Ansem tried a dirty trick.

As Sora began his final charge, Ansem threw sand into his eyes, temporarily blinding him. Then, coming up from behind, he shot an energy blast at Sora's back, sending him skidding in the sand. Sora slid for more than ten feet, almost falling off the edge of the cliff into the never-ending abyss. He held on to the side, trying to get a good grip, while the sand trickled over as if it were falling in an hourglass. Ansem walked over, leaning on one knee to look closely at Sora's face.

"Well, it looks like you've lost _boy_," he said. "Although...I _could_ help you up and spare your life..._if_ you hand your Keyblade over to me. I need it to open the door to Kingdom Hearts, releasing the Heartless and the darkness that dwell within."

"First of all," Sora snarled, "Kingdom Hearts holds _light_, even _if_ there are Heartless inside. And second, I'll _die_ before I hand the Keyblade over to a _creep_ like you!!" Ansem's triumphant smile turned to an angry grimace.

"That can be arranged," he said. He held his hand in front of Sora's face, ready to blast him into oblivion. Suddenly, a voice yelled:

"Hold it Ansem!!"

Ansem's head began to throb painfully. He screamed, pressing his hands to his temples and falling to the ground. Sora could swear that he knew that voice. From where he was (still hanging onto the cliffside) he couldn't see what happening to Ansem. All he saw was a white flash of light. He began to feel his fingers slipping. Just as he started falling, an arm came down and caught him. He was helped up onto the sand, and collapsed from exhaustion. After a minute, he sat up. When he looked at the figure leaning over him, he could feel a tear escape his eye, but he quickly wiped it away.

"Hey Sora," said Riku with his sly smile, "Did ya miss me?"

Author's Note: _Hi everybody, it's Cheza. I hope you liked the first two chapters of my story. Please review to tell me how I did. I hope I didn't make Sora seem like a baby (crying and all). I just wanted to show how good he felt about seeing Riku again. The third chapter won't be out for a short while (maybe a week or so). By the way, the parts of the story with "" around them are parts that would be interactive in the game (meaning battles that you do). If you don't like the way I wrote them, you can imagine your own specific versions. _


	3. Reunion and Second Fight

Chapter 3: Reunion and Second Fight

"Riku!!" exclaimed Sora. "I can't believe you're here! But, how? Ansem said—"

"Don't believe what that jerk told you," Riku pointed to an unconscious Ansem. "That old geezer couldn't keep _me_ down. I was just waiting for the right time to make my entrance."

"Well you sure picked a good time to do it!" Sora said, a little annoyed. "Why didn't you just get out here when I _started_ fighting the guy!?"

"I _could've_ done that, but you had said you wanted Ansem 'all to yourself,' remember?" Riku said. "And I didn't want you to get lazy if I was there." They both laughed. It made Sora feel great to be able to be able to laugh again. Just then, he remembered something.

"Hey Riku," he asked. "I thought Ansem had completely taken over your body?"

"Just because he tried to trap me in my own body doesn't mean that he could get rid of me. When he got strong enough to rejuvenate _his_ body, he 'packed' _mine_ away (for safekeeping I guess). Once he changed, I woke my heart up from the 'nap' it was taking, joined together with my body, and made a break for it. Easy, right?"

"Uh, yeah Sure," Sora said. "Makes perfect sense."

"Oh!" Riku said. "Just remembered! Where's Kairi? Is she okay?"

"Don't worry, Kairi's fine," his friend reassured him. "I told her to wait in Traverse Town, so she could be safe."

"Good idea. We wouldn't want you to get distracted Lover Boy!" jeered Riku.

"Hey!" said Sora, his cheeks turning bright red as Riku laughed. Suddenly, they both froze. They had heard a noise behind them.

"He's getting up," Sora said.

"I guess the separation wasn't as hard on him as I thought it would be," Riku responded. "Could've _sworn_ he would be out for _hours_ at least. Oh well," he added, bringing out his Dark Keyblade, "I guess we'll have to _make_ him stay down."

"Hey!" cried Sora, surprised. "How do you still have that thing?!"

"I sort of brought it with me when I left Ansem. It's not the _only_ thing I brought out..." he said as he tapped his head. "I still have all of those cool moves I learned. Up here."

"I can't wait to see you use them on someone besides me!" Sora joked.

"Heheh, sorry about that," Riku said. "I wasn't exactly myself then."

"Don't worry about it," his friend reassured him. "It wasn't your fault." As they were talking, Ansem stood up. He glared at the boys.

"I don't know how you got out," he snarled at Riku, "but I will make sure you have no time to _enjoy_ your freedom! As for you," he added to Sora, "I was holding back before, but I won't go easy on you any longer!"

"_Oooooooo_, we're _sooooooooo scaaaaareeed_!" mocked Sora and Riku. They brought out their Keyblades and stood together. They charged at their enemy, ready to give it their all, and the battle began.

Ansem seemed just as powerful as before, if not stronger. Sora used most of the same attacks and magic as before. Once in a while he added in a Ragnarok or two in between. Without all the anger he had felt before, his mind was clearer, and he could fight with even better potential.

Riku's attacks were _exactly the same_ as the ones he had used on Sora in Hollow Bastion. One of the more powerful ones made it look like he was making a light show. He would disappear then reappear, quickly attacking Ansem then disappearing again. While he did this, he would cause lightning to come from all directions.

The fight didn't seem to be going either way. No one could tell who would win. Riku began trying to distract each Ansem to make him angry.

"Hey Ansem!" Riku yelled at one point. "Barbie just called. She wants her hair and make-up back!"

"You insolent little nuisance!" Ansem said, his entire body seeming to ignite with the frustration rising in him.

"Riku...be careful," Sora warned. "You don't know what he might do if he gets mad enough."

"Don't worry," his friend assured him. "That old windbag can't do anything about it. I mean, how ancient is he anyway? A hundred? Five hundred?"

"Haven't you ever heard that wisdom comes with age!?" Ansem muttered, his anger turning into fury.

"Well then _you_ must be the wisest man in the _world_ Gramps!! Hahahahahah!!" Riku almost fell to the ground from laughing, and even Sora couldn't resist his friends antics.

"_That_—_is_—_IT_!!" screamed Ansem. "I will take _no more_ of your insolence!!" He moved as if made of lightning, seeming, like in Riku's attack, to disappear and reappear in several places. Suddenly, he was right in front of Riku, knocking him to the ground. The Dark Keyblade sliding away from him. Sora was next. Ansem shot him onto his back as he tried to help Riku. His Keyblade flew towards Riku's, too far to crawl to.

Both boys lay next to each other, unable to get up. It was as if their bodies had given up from the shock. Ansem walked where they lay, anger and triumph gleaming in his eyes. He leaned down, grabbing Riku and Sora by their necks and lifting them into the air. They tried to get away, but they no longer had the energy to fight back.

"Now..." Ansem said. "I don't need either of you any longer. I could just leave you here and take your Keyblades. Then again, I could destroy you now and finish my experiment unchallenged. Frankly, I prefer the latter." As he said this, his grip tightened around his enemies' throats. Riku and Sora fought to get him off, but to no avail. They were slowly losing consciousness.

Just as Sora began to accept that they were going to die, he heard Kairi's voice in his head. He could almost see her in front of him.

"Sora!!" she cried. "Don't give up! Everything depends on you and Riku! Don't let Ansem beat you! Fight back! You can do it!!"

"Kairi," Sora whispered. "I'm sorry, but I can't beat him. He's too strong. He beat me _and_ Riku easily."

"You just let your guard down for a second. You can still do it!" the girl assured him. "You just need a little more help."

"But where am I going to get help from? And how do I call for it?" Sora asked.

"Don't worry Sora," Kairi said. "Help is on the way." For some reason, he felt as if he wasn't just imagining the voice. He opened his eyes, and at the same Riku did too.

"So I guess you heard her too," Riku wheezed. Ansem's grip was making it hard to breath or speak, and impossible to move their heads.

"Yeah," Sora said. "It's like she's right here."

"Well well," Ansem said. "I'm surprised you're both still conscious. Don't worry though; I'll end your suffering soon."

Suddenly, there seemed to be a glow coming from several feet behind Ansem. He didn't seem to notice it, but above his head Riku and Sora could see it clearly. It seemed to grow in intensity, then shrink again. Ansem noticed the boys' surprised stares.

"Now what are the two of you looking at?" he asked. He barely got to finish the sentence before he was blown forward as if kicked in the back. Sora and Riku were freed from his hold. Instead of quickly falling to the ground though, they seemed to float for a bit before landing softly on their feet. Together they turned around to see where the glow had gone. It was gone, and in its place, they saw a very familiar face.

"Hiya guys!!" Kairi said. "Looks like I got here just in time."

End Chapter

Author's Note: Hey Everybody!! Here's my third installment! Hope you guys like it. It's the longest one yet. Just wondering, who did you think the familiar face was going to be. My sister thought it was going to be Mickey. Anyway, I'm going to get Chapter 4 in as soon as I can. See ya later! Ttfn! -Cheza


	4. Final Battles!

Chapter 4: Final Battles!!

"Kairi!" Sora cried as he ran towards her. Riku held back, too ashamed to go forward. He watched his friends hug each other, then run back to him.

"Hey Riku!" said Kairi, waiting for her hug. Riku looked down at the sand, not wanting to look her in the face.

"Kairi," he said quietly, "Sora, I'm sorry I hurt you guys. I don't know why I did it. I could've killed the both of you…"

"Stop beating yourself up about that Riku!" Sora told him. "It wasn't your fault!"

"Yeah!" Kairi joined in. "That was _Ansem_ doing those things, not _you_!"

"Still, I _did _kidnap you Kairi," Riku persisted.

"Well, that's true…" Sora said.

"You were only trying to help me!" Kairi reassured him. "You were just being competitive, like always!"

"Yeah!" Sora chimed in.

"Thanks guys," Riku said as he looked up. "Now where's my hug?!" They gave each other a group hug (a completely _not gay_ one). Then, Riku realized something. "Kairi!" he said. "How did you get here!?"

"And what did you do to Ansem?" Sora said.

"Actually…" Kairi began, "I'm not sure exactly _how_ I got here!" As she talked, there is a flashback. Kairi is in the secret cave in Traverse Town. "I was worried about you guys. So I got Chip and Dale to take me to the End of the World." A gummi ship travels to End of the World, and Kairi gets out. "Once I got there, I knew I wouldn't be able to help you guys fight, even _if_ I could find you."

"Suddenly, I somehow knew you both were in trouble." Kairi holds her head, a surprised look on her face. "I felt your minds, somehow, and I was desperate to save you. All I could think about was being there with you, wherever you were. I wanted to give you support, and cheer you on!

"While I was thinking, I felt like I was moving. Everything around me was darting by and swirling around." Everything around her seems to dissolve into a multicolored, chaotic background. "Finally, I ended up here." Kairi is standing on the beach as a light glows around her. "I saw Ansem holding you two up in the air, and I noticed what he had done to our island." Kairi looks around at the beach, seeing the abyss and Ansem holding Sora and Riku up by their necks. "I was furious!! I wanted to knock Ansem into the sky, then make him come crashing to the ground!!" Kairi's face shows pure fury and hate, and her hair seems to stand up with her anger. Somehow, I guess my wish came true. He flew backward, and was smashed into the sand!" Ansem lifts into the air and falls hard to the floor. You guys were falling, but I hoped you wouldn't get hurt, and you just floated down!" Sora and Riku float gently to the floor. The flashback ends.

"I'm so glad you two are okay!!" Kairi finishes.

"Woah," the boys sigh, their mouths agape.

"Kairi," Riku said in awe and admiration, "I think you're telepathic, and telekinetic too!"

"I'm tele-what?" Kairi asked, confused.

"He means that you have mind powers!" Sora helps. "We heard you when you tried to give us support. You teleported yourself, _and _you threw a guys six feet into the air just by thinking it!!"

"Wow! I didn't realize it!" Kairi said. "Maybe I should try it out again, just to be sure. She closed her eyes, concentrating. The three of them floated upwards, light as a feather.

"Woah!" the three of them said. "This is amazing!!" After a minute, Kairi brought them back down.

"Man, Kairi" exclaimed Sora. "Where'd you learn to do all of this?"

"Well…" Kairi replied. "I can't actually remember having these powers when I was little."

"So you've got your memory back, huh?" said Riku.

"Yup!" Kairi said. "I can remember almost everything from when I lived in the castle at Hollow Bastion! I still don't remember learning anything with my abilities though."

"I think I might know how it happened," Riku said. "Maybe you had the power inside you all along. It was just hidden too deeply to ever notice. When you had all those emotions occurring at once, it sparked your power and helped it to awaken."

"Wow Riku!" said Sora. "That's a great theory! How did you think of it?"

"Well," replied Riku, slightly sheepishly. "I saw it on an anime once, and thought it this might be the same." Kairi and Sora fell to the floor in embarrassment.

"This isn't a cartoon!" Kairi scolded. "It's real life!"

"Hey!" Riku said defensively. "It's possible! Enough weird stuff has happened to us already. What's one more weird thing going to do?"

"That's true," Sora agreed.

"I guess you _could_ be right…," Kairi said.

"Shhh. Hold on a sec," Riku said suddenly. "I think our friend is waking up." As he said this, they saw Ansem get up again.

"Well," the scientist said, "hello Princess Kairi. It's nice to see you."

"Don't talk to me like that!" said Kairi. "I don't care if I'm a princess! It's not like I'm any different from who I've always been!"

"Oh?" Ansem replied. "I'm sorry then Princess. I didn't mean to.," he continued with no real guilt in his voice.

"Don't worry Kairi!" said Sora as he jumped in front of her.

"We'll protect you!" Riku joined him. They took out their Keyblades. Kairi's face grew red with frustration.

"Will you guys cut it out already?!" she said. She used her powers to pick the boys up and put them behind her. "As you can see, I can take very good care of myself now. It's _my_ turn to protect _you._ I can put up a barrier that you guys will be able to attack in. It'll probably be a lot better than that aeroga, and you can save your MP for attack magic and summoning. Plus, I'll try to make Ansem's power blasts go off course." Her friends stood there, their jaws dropped.

"Woah Kairi…" Riku said in admiration, "you're really starting to take charge here!"

"Yeah!" Sora chimed in. "You're turning out to be a great leader!" Kairi giggled.

"Heehee! Thanks guys!" she said. "These powers make me fell a lot more confident! For the actual fighting though, I think _you_ two should be co-leaders. I'll just stand by to help when I can." Ansem cleared his throat for attention.

"Ahem!" he said. He stood in the same place he got up from, tapping his foot.

"Oh yeah," Sora said, scratching his head casually. :I forgot he was even there for a while."

"Well excuse me _children_," an indignant Ansem hissed. "If you're done with your strategical chit-chat, I'd like to get this battle over with."

"Hey!" said Riku. "Don't call us children! We're not just some kids you can push around!"

"Yeah!" added Kairi.

"That's it!!" Ansem exclaimed. "You three have been a thorn in my side for _too long!_ It's time for me to get rid of you boys, _and_ the princess, and to get on with my plans! I will soon prove that everything is, and always will be, overshadowed by darkness!!"

"It's time to prove you wrong!" the three young friends shouted together. "Bring it on Grandpa!!"

Kairi quickly set up a barrier as Riku and Sora rushed forward. Ansem summoned some of his toughest Heartless (Behemoths, White Angels, Wyverns, etc.) to slow them down, but the boys just ran past them, slicing left and right their weapons. They cut a path through to the evil scientist. He was still just as powerful as in the previous battle. Nevertheless, with Kairi deflecting most of his attacks, and sometimes sending them _back_ at him, Ansem was having a hard time of it. Sora and Riku took turns attacking, barely needing to use special attacks. Finally, the coward decided to pull out some tricks again…

Ansem put up a barrier and jumped high into the air. He floated too far up for Riku and Sora to jump to. Suddenly, the ground began rumbling.

"What is it now?!" Riku called over the noise.

"I think I know what this is!" Sora replied. It's Darkside!!" As he said this, a huge shadow appeared and spread on the ground. Out of it, a tall figure grew. It was Darkside, the monster that Sora had fought several times before. Alone, Sora had beaten him over and over with not a lot of effort. With his friends there, he knew this time would be no problem.

"Don't worry guys!" ha said with confidence. "He's easy! Just go after his hands, and try not to show any fear!"

"Alright! No problem!" Riku shouted.

Sora and Riku each took a hand, hacking at Darkside when its arms were low enough for them to reach. The monster tried to shoot small black balls of energy at them, but thanks to Kairi, few even hit. Then, it tried to swat wildly at them, trying to knock them down and get them away. Though it was dangerous, this made it easier to get hits in. Soon, they could tell they had it beat.

Suddenly, Darkside staggered near Kairi. For just a second, she became a little frightened and lost concentration. This gave it enough of a chance to knock her down.

"Kairi!" Sora cried.

"Are you all right?!" Riku said as Kairi stood up. Her eyes seemed to burn with a white-hot fire, and a white glow emanated from her hands. She pointed a finger at the monster.

"How _dare_ you, you big bully!!" she yelled at Darkside. Her power shot out like white-hot bolts of lightning from her hands. It hit the figure, making it shatter into thousands of little pieces and dissolving before their eyes.

"Woah Kairi!" Sora cried, eyes growing huge with awe.

"You're just full of surprises aren't you?" Riku said.

"Heehee!" Kairi giggled. "Guess I am!" From high above them, Ansem was shaking with fury, as well as a tiny spark of fear. His pompous nature wouldn't allow him to show that fear, though. He tried to calm down.

"Well Princess," he said, "congratulations on discovering all your powers."

"I don't need _your_ congratulations, jerk!" Kairi snapped.

"Well!" Ansem said sarcastically. "I'm hurt. You have deeply scarred my feelings Princess."

"Good! I'm glad!" Kairi said. "And stop calling me 'Princess!'" Now get down here so we can finish you off!!"

"Hey Kairi," Sora said, surprised, "I agree with you, but it isn't like you to be so angry at people."

"I'm sorry guys," the small girl said. "I know I'm not usually so mean, but I can't help it. Ansem is so horrible! He's done nothing but hurt people! He could help people with his research and knowledge, but he's just using it to prove that he's right. He'd rather that everything be destroyed than for him to be proven wrong." Her hands began glowing again. "I can't let him do that! I want to stop him from hurting so many people!" She looked down to hide the tears threatening to spill from her eyes. Her hands faded, and she started shaking.

"It's alright Kairi," Riku said gently as he put his hand on her shoulder. We're right here."

"Yeah," Sora said as he joined them. "And together we'll make Ansem pay!"

"Thank you guys sniff,"Kairi said. She looked up, her eyes free of tears. "Watch out Ansem! We're going to bring you down!" She shot out her power at the scientist. It hit him, and he fell far to the ground. When he got up, he was laughing.

"Hahahahahahah! So…" he said menacingly. "As long as you're together, you can beat me? Well, then I'll just have to separate the three of you!"

Suddenly, the world seemed to melt away around them. The beach, the trees, the _entire island_ faded away from right beneath their feet. Everything was black, and the three heroes felt weightless. Kairi summoned rings of light around each of them so that they could see. Apparently though, there was nothing _to_ see. All that filled the place was emptiness.

"Where are we?" asked Kairi, her voice echoing off of nonexistent walls. They split up, flying around and looking for a way out.

"Wait!" cried Sora. "Do you hear that?" They listened, and recognized Ansem's laughing. First it was faint, but it got louder.

"He's got a great sense of humor, doesn't he?" joked Riku.

"Nah," replied Sora as he tried to suppress his laughter, "I think he's just lost it!"

"Umm…guys?" I think you should look over here!" Kairi called. The boys stopped laughing as soon as they turned around. Behind them was Ansem, but the scientist was different. Somehow he'd transformed again.

From the waist up, his entire body was the same: but everything below that was completely changed. His legs were gone. They were now a mass of muscle and skin that attached Ansem to a huge, ship-like structure. The structure was called Dark Chaos. It came from all the hate and darkness in the world. It had a huge pink head at the front with a mouth full of sharp teeth. The whole thing was actually very colorful (but in an evil way)! It was mostly pink, purple, and dark blue. There were wiggling, blue-black, pointy protrusions all over the bottom of the monstrous "ship." In the middle there seemed to be a huge light blue "room" with transparent walls. More of the wiggling protrusions were inside it, and in the middle was a sort of column (also light blue). A large sphere was in the column. It had eyes and a mouth that were white. Its expression seemed excited, but in a cruel way. The entire structure glowed with an evil light.

Sora, Riku, and Kairi managed to hide it, but they were terrified. Each wondered how they could possibly beat Ansem this way. When they looked each other though, they gained confidence. "Together we'll beat him!" they thought at the same time (Kairi, of course, could tell that the others were thinking it). Suddenly, cages of black-and-purple fire encircled each of them, shutting out Kairi's light. They could hear Ansem laughing outside.

"Hahahah! Let's see how well you three do _alone_, _without_ each other!!" he said. The three friends were teleported to three smaller empty dimensions. In front of each of them was a small army of all types of Heartless! They began their separate battles.

Sora waited as the Heartless surrounded him. When they came at him, he'd target a few and destroy them, then go for another group. Once in a while he got tired and used potions and elixirs. It took a long time, but after a lot of slicing and spell-casting, he had taken down every Heartless there.

Riku's situation was the same, except that he was the first to attack, before the Heartless even moved. He tired out less quickly, but he didn't know any magic. His Dark Keyblade swiftly took out several Heartless at a time. He could even control a few, making them destroy each other. Finally, he'd finished with his group too.

Unlike the boys, Kairi didn't have a real weapon. She _did_ know a lot of magic though, and she had her powers. She lifted as many as she could into the air and knocked them together. Firaga, Blizzaga, and other attack magics were useful too. After trying for a while, she decided to get rid of them all in one sweep. Concentrating as well as she could, she charged up her attack. Since she couldn't put up a barrier while charging, she had to keep dodging the enemies that would jump at her. Eventually, she managed to fully charge up. Kairi lifted her self high above the monsters, and blasted every one of them into oblivion.

When each of them beat the Heartless in their smaller dimensions, Sora, Riku, and Kairi returned to the original place. They were in the black-purple cages again.

"Well done, young ones," said Ansem sarcastically. "Welcome back to the Hallway," he continued as a tiny light appeared far behind him. "Behind me is the Doorway. You'll have to get through _me_ to get to it. Of course, you can't do much in the position _you're_ in! Hahahahaha!!" He laughed madly at his apparent victory. It was cut short, though, when the three friends easily stepped out of their cages!

"Th…this…can't be!" cried Ansem. "How could you _possibly_…?!"

"What part of 'as long as we're together we can beat you' _didn't_ you get Ansem?" Sora shouted to him, a big grin on his face. "We don't have to be _right next to_ each other to use the power of our friendship," he continued.

"You've never had anyone who loved you dearly, no matter what," Kairi said sympathetically.

"So you don't understand what we have," Riku added. "And you can't _ever_ really beat us."

"This is impossible!!" Ansem screamed. "It goes against all scientific reasoning! Only the strongest and most experienced are supposed to survive! You are only _children_! You don't know _anything_! I _can_ beat you!" he said, calming down a bit. "And I _will _prove what I have dedicated _years_ of my _life_ to find out!" Sora shook his head in sympathy.

"You'll never understand Ansem," he said. "The inly way for you to learn is for us 'kids' to prove you wrong." His friends nodded behind him, and the three of them flew at the scientist to fight one more time.

They first went after Ansem himself. The madman seemed to have used up most of his powers, but he had made two staffs of light from what remained or it, and he could still use regular magic. Sora and Riku sliced at him directly: sometimes taking turns, while other times they attacked at the same time. Kairi stood back to block Ansem's magic, occasionally getting a shot at him.

After a while, the cowardly villain put up a barrier, and the friends had to find out how to get rid of it. They found out that by destroying all the purple wiggling things, they made the walls of the inside room go down (apparently that had also been a barrier). Inside, they destroyed the last of the protrusions and went after the ball in the middle. Its expression changed from sadistically excited, to angry, and finally to fearful. Once it was destroyed, Ansem's barrier went down.

Finally, Sora, Riku, and Kairi went after Ansem for the last time. His power was depleted down to his last reserves, so it didn't take too long. He was out of strength, out of tricks, and out of luck. At last, the corrupt scientist was defeated.

They had finally won, and it was all over. Or so they thought…

-End Chapter

But not the end of the story!!

Author's Note: Hiya everybody! I'm sorry I haven't posted anything in a while. I have almost _no_ free time! High school is a lot harder to get through than they let you believe. Anyway, I'm already almost done with the last Chapter (#5). I won't post it until next Friday though, so you'll all have to wait! Also, could someone give me some helpful criticism here? I love the good reviews, but I want to know if I'm doing anything wrong too. My next stories will be coming soon. I hope they're as good as this one. Anyways…I talk too much!! My next chapter will have a review corner at the end, so look for yours!! Bye! TTFN!!

—Cheza


	5. Goodbyes

Chapter 5: Good-byes

"Alright!!" shouted Sora. "We did it!!"

"Look over there!" Kairi said and pointed to the side. They must have moved forward somehow, because the Doorway to Kingdom Hearts was just a few feet away.

"Let's go open it!" Riku said.

"Hey! Wait for us!!" two voices said close by. It was Donald and Goofy. They had also fallen through to this place, and had watched (still in cages) as the battles had gone on.

"Hey guys!" Sora said, a little embarrassed. "I...kinda forgot you were still there. Heheh. I'm glad you're alright though!"

"We're happy you're OK too Sora!" said Goofy.

"Goofy!" shouted Donald, bowing to Kairi. "We're in the presence of royalty! Excuse him, Your Majesty," he continued in his quaking speech. He took Kairi's hand and kissed it (if ducks can kiss without lips!).

"Um...I'm not sure what you just said," Kairi said as the boys tried not to laugh behind her, "but it's alright. Just because I'm a princess doesn't mean you have to treat me differently. Please, my name's _Kairi_, Donald. Just act like you never found out I was royalty."

"Hey," Goofy cut in in his drawling accent, "that's a purty door over tharr. It's so big! Ah wunder what's inside"

"OK!" Riku said. "Let's _open it_ already!" As they all walked towards the Door, it began to open by itself! When it did, the light of it became darker, and it seemed to give off an evil aura.

"Hahahaheehee! You fools! Can you see now?! I was right all along! There is only _darkness_ beyond the Door!!" It was Ansem's voice again. He stood in front of them, laughing insanely. His body seemed to be slowly deteriorating (his legs were _completely gone_). "You may have beaten me, but now the darkness will consume you all!! Hahahahahah!"

As Ansem spoke, Sora looked back at the Door, not wanting to believe that the corrupt man was right. Looking closely, he noticed something inside the entrance. He turned back to Ansem, smiling.

"Sorry Ansem," Sora said, "but you're _still_ wrong. No matter how much darkness there is, there is always a spark of light within Kingdom Hearts and inside everything else!" When he finished saying this, the Door opened up even more. The thing that Sora had seen was a small dot of light. It grew brighter and larger, until it became a huge beam that filled the Doorway. When the light touched Ansem, he screamed in pain.

"Aaaaaaaagh!! No!! This...can't...be...possible!! Noooooooooo!!!!" These were Ansem's last words. The once great man had misunderstood the love in every creature; and now he was defeated. He seemed to become dust, floating away as the light scattered it. Everyone sighed, glad that the fighting was finally over. They all turned to the Door again.

"Come on!!" said Sora as he ran toward it.

"Maybe King Mickey's inside!" Goofy added as he ran after his young friend. The five of them ran up to the Door and looked inside. They were shocked at what they saw. Inside Kingdom Hearts, there were hundreds, even _thousands_, of Heartless! They were massed together in a pit, apparently trying to get out.

"It's horrible!" Kairi cried. "How could this have happened?!"

"I don't know," Sora said, "but we've _got_ to stop them from getting into this world!!"

"We have to close the Door!" Riku said. They tried to push the Door closed as quickly as they could, but it was heavy, and it seemed to even resist them.

"It's not closing fast enough!" Donald shouted.

"Maybe tharr needs to be sumbody on tha other side ta pull it!" Goofy suggested.

"But wouldn't they get stuck there?" Sora said.

"I'll do it!" Riku said. "It's the only way I can make up for what I've done!"

"Riku no!!" Kairi cried.

"You _don't_ have to do this!" Sora said.

"_Yes_, I do! Please, just let me do this _one_ thing," Riku pleaded with them. Before they could stop him, he'd slipped inside. On one side Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Kairi pushed on the Door, while Riku tried to pull it from the other side. They managed to move it faster, but it _still_ wouldn't close completely.

"Why isn't it _working_ already!!" Sora said exasperatedly.

"Guys!" they heard Riku shout. "There's someone here! He says you have to _lock_ the Door!"

"'_Lock _it?!'" Sora cried "How am I supposed to...I got it!" He took out his Keyblade and stepped back. While he held up his "key," a shadowy figure also held up a "key" on the other side. This Keyblade, though, was _gold_ (instead of Sora's _silver_ one). The figure let out a high, squeaky laugh.

"Your Majesty!!" Donald cried.

"King Mickey!" Goofy said. Both Keyblades began to glow, and everyone else pushed as hard as they could. Finally, the Door closed. Right before it shut, they heard Riku say:

"We'll see you on the other side! Good luck!" Once it was shut, the Door to Kingdom Hearts disappeared. Somehow, they were all back at the End of the World. From here they saw stars appearing randomly all over the sky. Parts of where the friends stood were breaking away and joining some stars. Soon the sky was glittering brilliantly, and _still_ falling stars flew by.

"What's going on?" Kairi said wondrously.

"I think the worlds are all coming back together!" Sora said, his eyes wide..

"They're real purty," Goofy drawled.

"Amazing!" Donald quacked.

"So beautiful!" Kairi whispered. "To think we never knew there were so many worlds out there! I guess now everyone can go back to where they belong now."

"Yeah," Sora said, turning to face her. "Now _we_ have to go to where _we_ belong, too." Just then, the ground between them cracked. They were slowly beginning to move away from each other. Kairi, who was floating away from the others, looked pleadingly at Sora.

"Why can't I come with you?" she asked.

"Your place is back on the island," he told her. "_We_ have to go find Riku. Who knows? Maybe you'll see him first!" The two of them tried to move closer to each other. Sora took Kairi's hands in his. "Don't worry Kairi. We _will_ find him. I'll see you again soon, OK?" He smiled at her. Kairi stood on tiptoe to whisper in his ear.

"Come back soon. I'll miss you guys," she said. Then she kissed him gently on the cheek. She moved back as Sora's face turned bright red. They realized they were both floating in midair (thanks to Kairi's powers again), so they went back to their places, secretly giggling. Kairi waved, saying, "Don't have too much fun without me!"

"Don't worry!" Sora called back. "We'll leave some of the fun for you!"

"Good-bye Princess!" Donald cried.

"Donald! I already told you! I'm _Kairi_! Oh forget it! See ya later!" Kairi said.

"Nice meetin' ya!" Goofy said.

"Bye guys!" Kairi called. All of them waved until they couldn't see one another any more. Kairi found herself back on the beach of the fully restored Destiny Islands. The sky was still glowing with the worlds returning to their rightful places. Each star twinkled with a new light and hope for the future.

-End Chapter-

(almost!)

Author's Note: _Hi everybody! That's the end of the game! Right here, you'd see the credits and stuff I think. Keep reading, though, because there's also something after! I'll put my review corner and disclaimer here:_

Disclaimer: I _don't_ own Kingdom Hearts, but I _do_ own this story itself. No stealing goin' on here!

Review Corner:

Review from animeprincess1452 says: "Hey! That was a great chapter. Kinda funny. The wait was worth it... i really enjoyed reading it. One thing i have to say i would love for people to call me princess... i am the Anime Princess...  
EWM: Oh you're so full of it...  
Me: Shut it! You're just an evil spirit that drives me nutty...  
Radita: You can say that again... gets back to reading  
Me: Sry about that... you know how split personalitys can be... lol. Well anyway, there is not much i have to critize on... you are a great writer... So jealous... you can be better then me... but that's all cool, your my friend and a fellow writer. You do your work very well. I know what you mean when you say its hard to update. School can really get hecktic with us so it can be hard to write from time to time. continues to write chapters All i can really say is continue doing things the way you are doing... i really enjoy your work. Very good... very intresting... just very cool. I can't wait to read more of this story and i can't wait to see future work from you. See ya at school. Peace. looks over review Damn i write to much... lol. Laters."

Reply: Thanks Princess! I think being called princess would be good for a while, but, like Kairi, I wouldn't want it to become a necessity or anything! School is pretty ok, it's just the _homework_ I can't deal with!! You're lucky you can do yours in school!

Animegoil said:"Lol. Thanks for your review! Actually, I've only read up to the third book. I don't think satoshi and Daisuke are gay at all, but they're my favorite couple, and if you see the DNAngel fandom, the most popular pairings are Dark/Krad and Satoshi/Daisuke. And Krad is Satoshi's alter ego, but i don't think he comes in until the 4th book or later. He'll come in soon enough, and become a huge character. Anyway... the reason i know all this is simply i research my shows! And I've read so many fanfics basedon events that happen in the manga. Oh, and I know your first name, Cheza, comes from Wolf's Rain, which is one of the coolest shows! (Oh, and by the way, DNAngel is an anime as well!) I don't know where the second name came from though. Oh and this is a good, fic, althought I've only played Kingdom Hearts a couple times. Don't have playstation cry"

Reply: You're right. Satoshi and Dais _do_ seem a little cute together. Daisuke reminds me of the main character from Gravitation (minus the gayness), because he's kind of like a puppy who follows his friends around! Also right about my first name! I got it from Wolf's Rain (which had such a weird/sad ending!! Boo-hoo!).The lunar flower maiden was just too cute. (Cheza:This one thinks so too!! Amanda: Shhhhh! You'll give us away!) I hope you can get a PS2 sometime soon. It's actually really good for stress!

Red Neko says: "Can I guess the second part of your name? I know what it is!"

Reply: I bet you would have been right, but you never guessed! The second part of my name (Arosukir) is actually "Riku Sora" backwards! I just thought it sounded cool!

Princess Zakuro said: "I loved the way you write i cant wait till the next chapter comes out i think you should write more stories id give you writing 4 stars."

Reply: Thanks sis! I think you should start writing stories too! You could do one on Tokyo Mew Mew!

Animeprincess1452 also said: "This was a great chapter. I really enjoyed it. You are doing a great job on this story. I am very impressed with how well you are doing. I knew you had the writter's spirit. (being a writer myself)This story just keeps getting more and more intresting everytime i read it. Its amazing! The story is very actioned packed it keeps you on the edge of your seat to see more. I love that! I can't wait to see more. Awesome job! Keep up the good work! Update soon. ttyl. Ja ne."

Reply: Thanks a lot Kim! It's because of you that I found out about fanfic, so I'm dedicating this chapter to you! (As well as to my sister, who helped me get inspiration for the story itself!)

AyunameDragon said: "It was good!"

Reply: Thanks! Simple but sweet! Keep reading, I just hope I'll keep getting better!

Author's Note (some more): _There you go! And in case you didn't realize it, the secret to my name is that Cheza is a character in the anime "Wolf's Rain," while "Aro ukir" is "Riku Sora" backwards! For those of you who guessed right, you get...nothing!! Sorry, but it was just a contest for fun and your imaginations! You don't need a big prize when you've got imagination! (Man that was cheesy! Runs away from angry contest winners). Now for the very final part of my story!!_

Sora, Donald, and Goofy were walking down a long, winding road. There were fields all around, and the sky was a bright blue. They couldn't see any buildings for miles in any direction.

"Well, what do we do now Sora?" Goofy said.

"I guess we have to find a new way to get into Kingdom Hearts," Sora replied thoughtfully. "Then we can go and find Riku and your king."

"But you and King Mickey _locked_ the Door!" Donald argued.

"There's _gotta_ be a back way in," Sora told him. "There's _always_ a back door. Maybe we won't even need to find it," he went on. "Maybe they got out somehow."

"How would we know?" Donald persisted.

"I dunno," Sora said. "Maybe..."

"Hiya Pluto!" Goofy called. The boy hero and the duck magician looked in the direction the he pointed. Pluto the Dog was coming out of some bushes on the side of the road. He was a little ahead of them, but they could see an envelope in his mouth. On it was King Mickey's seal (you know, the mouse facething? Disney's symbol?). Donald, Goofy, and Sora looked at each other, then at the dog. Pluto seemed to smile at them, then he ran the other way. The three fighters ran after him.

"Come here Pluto! Good doggie! Give us the letter! Pleeeeeaaaaasseee?"

"Get over here you stupid dog!!"

"Garsh! He's fast!"

"Plutooooooooo!!"

-End Story-

(at last!)

Author's (Final) Note: _**IT'S FINISHED!!!!** My first ever fan fiction is finally done!! I hope you all loved _reading_ it as I loved _writing _it! I'll try to write more stories when I get the chance. If you want, send me topic requests! I love fantasy stories and anime and manga, and I'm even starting to draw characters. Just tell me what _you _want to read, and I'll see what I come up with. Also, I like a lot of RPGs and fighting games. Now, I'm gonna start my next story. Wish me luck and keep reviewing!!_

_-Cheza_

_P.S. If anyone has any _definite _ideas as to when Kingdom Hearts 2 comes out, pleeeaaase tell me!_


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